New Brunswick hosts 9th annual photo contest

The New Brunswick Free Public Library is hosting its annual photography contest from now until May. Started in 2008, the contest allows local residents to submit pictures for display at the State Theatre or the New Brunswick Cultural Center.

Amateur photographers at Rutgers now have a new outlet for their works.

The New Brunswick Free Public Library is hosting their Ninth Annual Photography Contest running from Feb. 1 to May 14. This year's theme is “Freedom: Capture Your World,” where contestants can show their personal perspectives of the world.

The Photography Contest and Exhibition started as a pilot program in 2008, said Kavita Pandey, a librarian. She has been in charge of New Brunswick Free Public Library’s Annual photography contest from the past eight years.

The library serves a culturally diverse population, she said. The significance of this program is to increase and enhance community experience and to provide a platform for budding a seasoned photographers to display their talents.

Submissions should be limited to three photos per individual and include both a printed photo and a digital copy in a .jpeg format. Printed photos must be 8 by 10 inches. The deadline for submissions is May 14, 2016. The submitted photos must be taken between Feb. 1 and May 14, according to the library's website.

All photos will be on display the library’s meeting room. Winning photos will be displayed at the George Street Playhouse and New Brunswick Cultural Center in Crossroads Theatre for about one month, Pandey said.

Winners will be announced at a reception on Friday, June 10. And the winning photos will be shown to the public at the George Street Playhouse and Crossroads Theatre during the reception.

“In order for people to increase their photographic skills, the library is offering three free workshops led by professional photographers,” she said.

The workshops are occurring on April 21, April 28 and May 4.

The public benefits from this program in a number of ways, Pandey said. It is open to all ages, it exposes the public to professional artists who run the workshops and it allows the public to display their artwork at prominent local locations.

Pandey also encouraged the contestants for photo submission.

“People should send in photos because library will be doing a photo exhibit with all the photos entered in the contest,” she said. “Each participant will be getting a certificate, if they enter in the contest.”

Photography is an ideal way to present her work because it is a flattened view of a single perspective, said Susan Pizzaia, a Mason Gross School of the Arts senior.

"People tend to automatically assume photographs are taken directly from life, unlike drawings or paintings where artists freedom seems more expected," she said. "I try to utilize this in my own personal work because I want the constructed aspect of my rooms to be a slow reveal.”

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Christine Lee is a School of Arts and Sciences senior majoring in American Studies. She is a staff writer at The Daily Targum. Follow her on Twitter @christie2504 for more.